Modern Mini Quilt Challenge Blog Hop

Welcome to my turn on Jennifer's Modern Mini Quilt Challenge Blog Hop.  I am chuffed to bits to have been asked again to add my tuppence worth; if you have followed the rest of the hop, you will be as surprised as I am!

I have made, swapped and received many minis over the last 3 years; on the whole they make me very happy, come in useful for covering up those things that need a little hiding away, or to simply look pretty and make the world a happier place.  Too much?

So when Jennifer first asked me, I thought I would definitely try to do something different.  Something that I probably wouldn't make on a larger scale, something a little out of my comfort zone.

I tried, I really did!

I cut into a charm pack of Lucky Penny, and then started doubting if it would work, and pulled out the colours and prints I didn't like, aka the browns!

 

I thought I would go wonky, and improv'.  I made small wonky log cabin blocks, but couldn't help myself, and squared them up!

Mini's are the perfect way to try new things, because if you don't like the result, it's not been a huge waste of time or fabric, and if it works, well you can then super-size to your heart's content!

I made this with the idea of having it on the dining table to replace the seen better days IKEA placemat we use for the sauces and things; I tend to flinch at the thought of mucky things near beautiful fabric but I will actually have no problem with using this!  It didn't turn out at all as I planned, and I don't completely dislike it, so it was still a success; even though I won't be making a bigger version.

To right the balance, I reverted to type this weekend, and pulled some of my tiniest scraps, to make something pretty.  Something I love, and something the ketchup will not be coming anywhere near!

The pieces were cut 1.5" x 2", and the finished mini measures up at a pleasing 8"x 15".

So there you have it, not everything turns out as you hoped, but being a mini, it will probably find a place, a use or a way to make you smile.

Today is the last day on the hop, so now it's your turn to get organised and join in.  Here's Jennifer again, in case you need reminding!

Here's the deal. The Modern Mini Challenge is a call to challenge yourself. Try something new: a new technique, a new pattern, a new thread, etc and make a mini quilt. 

A mini quilt makes it possible and oh-so-doable! 

What's a mini quilt? It's a mug rug, a pillow, a wall hanging, a table topper... you get the idea!

Check out the AMAZING minis in last year's contest! There were over 200 awesome entries! 

You don't have to be an experienced sewist to enter! Don't let your lack of experience keep you from joining in! I want this event to be fun, encouraging and inspiring- just go for it! Believe in your ability and go CREATE!!   Go be AWESOME!!

Speaking of awesome, there will be fabulous prizes available just for entering! So try your best, pick something fun to create that speaks to you and get sewing. 

The details:

You can enter any mini quilt that you've made within the past 6 months. Remember, a mini quilt can be a mug rug, a mini quilt, a pillow, a table topper, etc. Only one entry per person. 

Size requirements: must be at least 6" x 6" and no bigger than 24" x 24". 

You can enter a mini quilt made from your own design or from a pattern. Please give credit to the pattern designer in your description. 

Need some inspiration? Never fear. I've got that covered! There's a snazzy group of quilters ready to share some of their creations to show just how fun a mini can be. The Modern Mini Blog Hop kicks off June 5!

June 5: Ellison Lane
June 6: Happy Quilting
June 7: Swim, Bike, Quilt 
June 8: Craft Buds
June 9: From the Blue Chair and Sewing Under the Rainbow 
June 10: The Sewing Chick
June 11: Flying Blind on a Rocket Cycle and Fresh Lemons Quilts 

Starting June 12, you'll be able to link up your entry here at Ellison Lane. You'll have until 5:00 PM EST on June 16 to add your mini quilt. Link from your blog (a NEW post please), your Flickr account or your Threadbias account. Remember, you don't have to have a blog to enter! 

PRIZES! Did she say prizes? For sure! Check out these amazing goodies up for grabs: 

$125 Gift Certificate to the Fat Quarter Shop

$75 Gift Certificate to the Intrepid Thread

$50 Gift Pack of Pellon Products

$50 Box of Coats and Clark Threads

(2) $50 prize packs of Dritz sewing products

$25 Gift Certificate to Christa Quilts

A Bundle of Marblehead fabrics from Fabri-Quilt

The $125 Gift Certificate winner will be chosen by my husband- his is the Wild Card Choice! The other prizes will be awarded by random draw.

So what are you waiting for? Get excited, get creative and get sewing. Challenge yourself and go make something great!
xo,
Jennifer

Thank you all for getting this far; thank you to Jennifer and to all the others on the hop for the continual inspiration, and now it's your turn xxx

Mine!

I have to admit, since they changed flickr I have not been looking around it as much as I used to - the discussion threads remain the same, but actually browsing pictures is a right royal pain in the slow-loading butt, if you ask me, which you didn't, so I'll move on...

Anyway yesterday I had a look through the FQ Retreat pool, commenting a little before getting fagged off with the we know you want to see EVERYTHING so will load it all and grind to a halt mularky, sorry sorry, but I saw a name tag with my name on it, except I didn't know that it literally did, until today!

Cue excited pause, whilst I unwrap...

Flash, moi?

I'll be wearing it all weekend in July, and quite probably at other times too!

It was made for me by Julie, who goes by the name Forest Poppy and blogs here.  Thank you so much Julie, I love it, and I think we can all agree that she stalked me good and proper!

So now I am going to spend the rest of the evening making up parcels and packages, and maybe wearing my name tag, just because I can! 

39 days and counting xxx

Apples & Peppers

My first pepper from Patchwork Please! was met with shouts of 'nice apple' from the household hecklers.  Hmm...that gave me an idea!

So here is my pepper...

I am going to take this one to work to help  make the hours pass more prettily; I am only in for 3 mornings this week, thanks to a timely Inset Day, but anything to make that time more in-keeping with what I would rather be doing, can't be a bad thing.

The idea?  Teacher gifts, actually Teaching Assistant gifts, and to make them a bit more 'teacher-ish', I rounded them out to really look like apples!

I just had to use the Dick & Jane print on the backs !

This is such a super easy, quick and effective little make.  I used freezer paper for my templates, and a frixion pen to draw round them.  I used ribbon instead of felt for the stalks, and felt for the apple leaves.

After making the pepper, I decided to put a little woven interfacing on the inside of the top piece as I could still feel the turning slit, and with the light fabric I thought, and it does, give it a better finish.   2 layers of fusible fleece instead of batting, cut a little smaller than the template to reduce the bulk, and Bob's your uncle.

The best bit, Mary mentioned using pinking shears in passing yesterday, and bugger me, if that wasn't the most obvious, useful and amazing tip for the curves EVER!  In fact, I used them for trimming the whole things.  Honestly, I would never have thought of that!!  Thanks M xxx

Linking up with awesome Lindsey and Debbie for week 1 of the Zakka 2.0 Sew Along.

Well apart from tripping out the mains power 3 or 4 times with the iron; even after changing the fuse, I had to resort to my old one, which is half the weight and probably just as rubbish good; I made Terri's second Brit Bee block...

It's a Twelve Pointed Star from Fat Quarterly's Shape Workshop book, and I think it looks lovely in T's low volume prints against the Kona Wisteria.

I might get my final June Bee block done this evening, or I might just stitch down the binding on the mini I finished today for the Modern Mini Challenge.

Decisions, decisions xxx

S-S-S-Saturday!

Super, smashing, sun-fuelled, sewing-filled and smiley Saturday.

All the cleaning and washing stuff completed nice and early; hubby took the kids to town, something to do with birthday shopping I believe, and that left me to sew in peace and quiet with the conservatory doors flung wide open.

So I now have 5 out of 7 June Bee blocks made.

That's two nice quick and easy Woven blocks for Bee Blessed...

Two not so quick, but still easy blocks for Katy in Stitch Tease, paper-pieced flying geese and an AMH-esque feather...

And the first of 2 stars for Brit Bee honey Terri...

After those, I sat in the sun and sorted some teeny scraps for my entry into Jennifer's Modern Mini Challenge; I made a mini already for the bloghop, but it just doesn't feel or look like me, so I am having another go...

And more blog hopping, I whipped up a little yellow pepper from Patchwork Please! for me to take to work; I'll get some snaps and show you tomorrow.  Honestly, so simple and I want to make more already!

So that was my day.  Hope you had a good one too xxx

Friday Frolics!

Apologies, the following anecdote contains blood and wee... but no pictures!

Well the after-school shenanigans were slightly more stressful than I was expecting - picture me trying to get twin 1 to wee into a cup whilst twin 2 is running round screaming because her second top front tooth in 24hrs had just fallen out, accompanied with rather a lot of blood, and all the while we were already late for Rainbows.  So with no success on the wee front, we had to head to Rainbows tissues, and funnel in hand. 

By the time we had seen the doctor a bit later, and the eventual wee given the all clear, I couldn't quite believe my blood pressure was not fit to burst, but it was fine; I must be getting used to life in the stressful lane!

OK, so maybe the delivery of fabric today may have got me in an untouchable mood...

Fabrics for the first month of the Siblings Together Bee, Terri's Brit Bee with some cheeky extras including popcorn teabags and a few sale bargains from Quilt Me Happy.

I have spent the evening making blocks for Bee Blessed and the first of Katy's June Stitched Teasers; I am hoping to get all my June blocks made this weekend, so 3 out of 7 is good going for Friday night already I reckon.

Right, time to don my Tooth Fairy wings again... until tomorrow xxx

Phew...

Not only has it been a scorching week, it has been just a bit of a busy one too.

This evening I am almost caught up on blogs and emails and ironing, and I have a 'To Do' list all ready for the weekend.  I can't wait for Saturday, as tomorrow's after-school activities will be calling on my taxi service more than once, and other than a quick sprint round with the hoover, I have nothing else booked.

So as not to leave you picture-free, at 5pm this evening the girls had their first 'proper' swimming lesson, not just the water-confidence fun the school deliver in class; I sat in the sun, whilst they went back and forth, wishing I could jump right in with them, so not fair...

I am too exhausted to be random this week sorry, I really need an early night xxx

Show & Tell

I have a stinking headache, so I am going to give you some quick show and tell!

The show...

I have turned all that prep from the other day into the simple pouch for Danny...

I used the Elizabeth Hartman perfect zipper tabs method, and oh boy I am impressed!

I have also made my swap items for Fat Quarterly Retreat...

There are four Liberty Love Pincushions, but don't be fooled, I may not be in a group of five, four just look way better then three.

I got these all finished up in the sun today; I think it may have gone to my head, so hopefully a good night's sleep and some aftersun will ease me into tomorrow!

The tell...

I am linking up again this year with my friend Jennifer for the Modern Mini Challenge that has started today. 

I'll let Jennifer explain...

"The Modern Mini Challenge is a call to challenge yourself. Try something new: a new technique, a new pattern, a new thread, etc and make a mini quilt.

A mini quilt makes it possible and oh-so-doable!

What's a mini quilt? It's a mug rug, a pillow, a wall hanging, a table topper... you get the idea!

Check out the AMAZING minis in last year's contest! There were over 200 awesome entries! 

You don't have to be an experienced sewist to enter! Don't let your lack of experience keep you from joining in! I want this event to be fun, encouraging and inspiring- just go for it! Believe in your ability and go CREATE!! 

Go be AWESOME!!

Speaking of awesome, there will be fabulous prizes available just for entering! So try your best, pick something fun to create that speaks to you and get sewing. 

The details:
You can enter any mini quilt that you've made within the past 6 months. Remember, a mini quilt can be a mug rug, a mini quilt, a pillow, a table topper, etc. Only one entry per person. 

Size requirements: must be at least 6" x 6" and no bigger than 24" x 24". 
You can enter a mini quilt made from your own design or from a pattern. Please give credit to the pattern designer in your description. 

Need some inspiration? Never fear. I've got that covered! There's a snazzy group of quilters ready to share some of their creations to show just how fun a mini can be. The Modern Mini Blog Hop kicks off June 5!

June 5: Ellison Lane
June 6: Happy Quilting
June 7: Swim, Bike, Quilt 
June 8: Craft Buds
June 9: From the Blue Chair and Sewing Under the Rainbow 
June 10: The Sewing Chick
June 11: Flying Blind on a Rocket Cycle and Fresh Lemons Quilts 

Starting June 12, you'll be able to link up your entry at Ellison Lane. You'll have until 5:00 PM EST on June 16 to add your mini quilt. Link from your blog (a NEW post please), your Flickr account or your Threadbias account. Remember, you don't have to have a blog to enter! 

PRIZES! Did she say prizes? For sure! Check out these amazing goodies up for grabs: 

$125 Gift Certificate to the Fat Quarter Shop

$75 Gift Certificate to the Intrepid Thread

$50 Gift Pack of Pellon Products

$50 Box of Coats and Clark Threads

(2) $50 prize packs of Dritz sewing products

$25 Gift Certificate to Christa Quilts

A Bundle of Marblehead fabrics from Fabri-Quilt

The $125 Gift Certificate winner will be chosen by my husband- his is the Wild Card Choice! The other prizes will be awarded by random draw.

So what are you waiting for? Get excited, get creative and get sewing. Challenge yourself and go make something great!
xo,
Jennifer"

So what are you waiting for?  Time to turn some big ideas into compact beauties xxx

Thank you Daniel...

Daniel is our postman.  He knocked on the door and told us his name on his first day.

Today whilst I was at work he managed to wedge this lot through the door.  I like it when I can't just swing the front door wide open when I get back, and that he didn't wimp out and leave a red card!

We have a Mollie Makes on subscription, and a 100 Blocks magazine that I won from Lindsey a while back.  The girls and I got new passports, they took less than a fortnight to process, I am impressed!  And the fabric and perle?  Lovely Annie sent me a voucher for The Village Haberdashery which I just had to add to, rude not to, obviously, and I have a plan that I will reveal when I have few more 'must dos' under my belt.

Anyway, must dash, Mad Dogs needs my full attention xxx

Groundwork and smiles!

This afternoon, I took advantage of our dear exhausted Cub's decision not to go swimming, I really didn't try to talk him round.  I flopped out in the sun with my bag of Liberty charms and scraps; which incidentally is a little Liberty bag I received at last year's Retreat from Mandy in the sample swap, and I pulled all the reds, pinks and blues to make my swapsies for this year.

I am going to make pincushions from Liberty Love, like the one I made before which was won by Trudi...

I have since cut all the pieces, so I am all set for the fun sewing bit.

I also cut the panels for a pouch that I am sending over to Danny for this year's Teen Reach Adventure Camp appeal.  If you would like to whip up a simple zipper pouch, drawstring bag or pillowcase for kids in the US Foster care system, take a look and please sign up.

And after all that prep, I checked my emails, only to have my day get even better by a surprise from Liberty to say I was selected as one of five winners to receive a FQ bundle after May's Instagram competition; I'm beaming!!

So now I am all set for a sewing session tomorrow, and with the prospect of more Liberty sessions to come in the mail.  And all this on my first day back at work!!

I'd like to say I hope your Monday was as good as mine, but really, you would have had to of won the lottery or something!

Super Smashing Tote!

Well I promised you a Sunday reveal, and I am now just about caught up with school uniforms and camp washing, (really quite relieved about the lack of mud), and trying to postpone that 'oh no, back to work tomorrow' feeling for as long as possible!

So here we have it...

I am going to claim this as my first Super Tote, as I love it so much, I really would like a version of this bag for all occasions and outfits!

The pattern is exactly what I have felt about all of Anna-Noodlehead's; very simple to follow, very preparation-intensive - but you know it will be worth it, open to a few personal tweaks if you are that way inclined, and turns out so well that you get a thrill from knowing that you made it.

With the exception of the long zipper, I made it from stash, and I am really quite pleased about that too.

Modifications?  I added an extra pocket inside the front outer one, because I had a perfect scrap of Echino, which I was determined to incorporate; it will also be useful for separating my phone or train tickets or other essentials from the rest of the gubbins I haul about.  I took the fully-lined outer pocket option, rather than just adding a facing.

I didn't stitch divided sections within the inside elasticated pockets, simply stitched a button in the middle and through the lining on each side, so that the pockets were maximum size but not gaping, as I feared they would be without anything.

I did a proper double-row of stitching to gather the bottom edge of the inside pockets too, for a nice even finish on those; I am getting so fancy in my old age.

My lining is a heavier weight aqua cotton canvas that I must have bought years ago, which, along with the Echino linen and woven interfacing, gives it a real sturdy feeling, and it can stand up on its own.

Oh and can I just say, Jeans needles, gift from the gods or what!!!?

My only regret is not bulking up the straps more, I added a strip of fusible fleece, but could have done with another layer.  I will remember that for next time.

I personally found this easier that the 241, as there are no tight curves to sew and top-stitch; and the size is brilliant, big without looking bonkers!

I think I am going to keep this one clean and fresh until Retreat, but you never know, I may have made another one by then!

May I take the Liberty...

Time to round up those May makes and link up with Lynne's Fresh Sewing Day.

Once again I was expecting not a lot, because with two bank holidays, day trips and half term, it doesn't feel like I spent much time behind the sewing machine, at all.

But I was wrong, and Liberty, my new addiction, seemed to play a big part in my month, and that makes me very happy!

June has started well, the sun has shone and I have a finish already.  Super Tote reveal tomorrow for those of you who haven't seen a peek today on Instagram.

This is going to be a busy month with hopefully a couple more finishes for the FAL, FQ Retreat swapsies to make and, oooh, it's my birthday!

So there you have it, time for me to try and catch up with the rest of the world; hope you had a good month, and are looking forward to the summer months as much as I am.

Friday Fings!

A potentially quite calm day was kicked into touch at about 9 am when I re-read the letter about camp and spotted the part about all Cubs to bring a homemade cake with them!  Bugger.

I don't do baking, other than that banana bread recently, so, with a bit of wishful thinking and a super special, and thankfully helpful friend, I jotted down the recipe for chocolate flapjacks, (having sampled many at the weekend), and dashed off to get supplies, including a baking tin, (oh I know, say nothing!).

Obviously we had to sample some, to make sure the Cubs were going to be OK, and I have been told by the girls to make more tomorrow, and that they want flapjack instead of cake for their birthday... in November!  Success then.

More in-keeping with the me you have come to know and love, a delivery from Pink Castle's 30% off skinny bolt sale last week; 2yrs of AMH voile and some Liberty Lifestyle...

And I have managed to crack on a little with my Super Tote...

I have got to the stage of basting the elasticated pockets to the lining, so fingers crossed it will be a June 1st finish.

Finally, dear son got dropped off at camp, complete with flapjacks, and it looks like they are going to have a great time...

So that'll be May then; finishing on a high in both temperature and spirit.  See you in June xxx

Be Prepared...

I spent the day preparing.

Dear son heads off for his first full pack camp tomorrow, and apparently the sun is due to return for the weekend, fingers crossed pleased; not worried about him, but rain = mud = lots more washing for mummy!

I then spent the afternoon preparing a Super Tote.  Sooooooooooooooooooo much cutting and interfacing and all that horrible mularky.  I did not enjoy that bit.  But it will be worth it, hopefully a good night's sleep will clear my head for the fun piecing bit!

So not random.  Sorry, but here's a link that will make you chuckle, especially if you are of a teacher-persuasion, the parent of teens, or just glad your school days are over.  Make sure you make it to no.33, that's my favourite!

Oh, and I uploaded the contents of son's Nintendo 3DS SD card onto my MacBook for him today, he is nothing if not random...

Linking with Cindy's Really Random Thursday.

Eeek!

Some days you know you will treasure forever.  Some days make you beam with pride.  Today I had one of those days.

The girls got behind the sewing machine for the first time, and they were thrilled!

We ran a few errands, and dropped dear son off at his friend's for the day, and needing a couple of bits from the little local sewing shop anyway, I thought, why not!

They were given free rein of the £1 FQ box and the discounted sparkly Disney princesses, and then we came home to sew.

Simple envelope back cushions were the pick of the day.

I did the cutting and pinning, they were in charge of the start/stop button, needle up/down and speed control.

There's ric-rac on the back, because I had some, in the right colours.  We even used the fancy combined straight/zig-zag stitch (no.11) to join the front and back pieces.

Within a couple of hours, and without any raised voices, we had cushions!!!

We even popped back to the sewing shop to show the lady, who was suitably impressed and a complete star with them!

When the weather changed for the worse this afternoon, they snuggled up on the sofa, and watched ET on DVD.

Now they are tucked up in bed using them as pillows.

A good day; a good mummy day.

#busy

Today we had an early morning appointment for the girls to get their hair cut, so obviously dear son had to have ago under the space helmets...

There was a trolley dash and house clean, and even a little bit of secret sewing, all whilst the rain beat down outside...

We then headed out to the cinema.  At 2 minutes to 5, having spent a frustrating amount of time in the ring road traffic, I managed to get into The Eternal Maker and grab a couple of spools of Aurifil 2021 just before they closed.

I have since spent a couple of hours of my life, that I will never get back, watching Epic.  It was better than The Croods; it looked pretty, but there was no adult wit, and not a vast amount of story, but the kids loved it.  I got to eat a bag of Malteasers.

So now back home, exhausted, watching a chap in Dubai zooming along on a Juki making flags, and I think that's my lot for the day.

Hoping to play catch up and take it a little easier tomorrow.  Maybe.

Bank Holiday Fortune...

Good and bad fortune in the shape of my latest make. 

Those wee Liberty/Heather Ross hexies that kept me occupied on my journey to Susan's and back were carefully planned to make a Lisa Lam Fortune Cookie purse; the pattern is included in the latest copy of Mollie Makes.  I bought a couple of the frames ages ago, and so now was the time.

Only it wasn't, well almost.  I made up the pouch yesterday, it looked perfect; I was thrilled. 

I glued in the first side, bit of a squeeze, but the second side was never going to work.  I tried, twice.  The pouch was just too small for the frame; I don't even think if I had scrimped on the seam allowances that it would have worked.  Bugger.

But determined not to let that get the better of me, I pulled a regular frame and it was the perfect size.  So once again good fortune has made this pouch my own...

I am going to use this one for the reels of thread and bigger wotnots that don't fit in my Patchwork Please! embroidery case; sorry all you ladies who feel that I should be handing that one over - it ain't going to happen!!!

And because it was a sunny Bank Holiday, we headed out to the Steyning Country Fair.  There were lots of animals...

... lots of general fun and lovely grub...

... then home for more garden time.  My afternoon incorporated a lot of this...

... looking at blue skies and having my nails painted with water and paintbrushes, possibly not as relaxing as it sounds.

Tomorrow is forecast for rain again, I have shopping, ironing and cleaning, all that boring indoor stuff to do that I have been ignoring in return for a great long weekend, so I mustn't grumble. xxx